Monday, October 25, 2010

My mail was fairly good. I received a lot of prizes from Allure magazine's giveaways. I cannot wait to try all these beauty products.

Here's a picture of everything I received:

October 18th-7x7 Magazine-All You Magazine

October 19th-People Stylewatch Magazine

October 20th-Pink wristband from Mountain Dew's Facebook Page-2 Harlequin Novels from the their Tell Harlequin Survey Panel-Neutrogena Rapid Clear Sore Pimple Gel I won from being one of the first 100 people to enter Allure Magazine's August 2010 giveaways. The price of this is $8.99.

October 21st-Wired Magazine-Vogue Magazine-Almay Eyeliner I won from being one of the first 500 people to enter Allure Magazine's August 2010 giveaways. The price of this is $7.49.-Neutrogena Shampoo I won from being one of the first 500 people to enter Allure Magazine's August 2010 giveaways. The price of this is $5.99.-Boscia Tonic I won from being one of the first 300 people to enterAllure Magazine's August 2010 giveaways. The price of this is $19.00.

In 2009 I entered 2 separate contests for a Styli-Style product from Allure Magazine's August 2009 giveaways (This is not a typo. This really is from their giveaway in 2009.)

It's been over a year but they finally sent out my prizes from the 2 contests. The original prizes they were supposed to send out are no longer available so to make up for that and the long delay they sent me 6 products worth about $40 total.

October 14th-Kleenex Tissue sample-Sebastian Matte Putty I won from Allure magazine's August 2010 giveaway - The full price is $16.95.

October 15th-Book Renter Pen I won from their Instant Win Game on their Facebook page

October 16th-OK! magazine-Soap Opera Digest-Entertainment Weekly-Toothpaste sample from Vocal Point-Philip B. Light Weight Conditioning Creme Rinse I won from Allure magazine's August 2010 giveaway - The full price is $26.00. When I opened the envelope I immediately got a whiff of how this smells and it smells good.-Schick prize pack I won from their Instant Win Game on their Facebook page which has 1 razor, 1 pack of 4 disposable razors, and 1 $2 off a schick product coupon.

If you have any freebies you've received in the mail lately feel free to share them with me and the other Mailbox Monday participants at http://www.afrugalfriend.net.

Also, if you haven't already, please publicly follow my blog by clicking the "Follow" button under the "Followers" section on the right hand side of the posts. Thanks!

New sales at CVS start on Sunday so I had to go and take advantage of the new deals.

I wanted to get more Extra Care Bucks (ECB) to use on buying Bio Oil which is worth $12.99. I had read great reviews about this product so I want to try it.

I created a scenario where I would use only $7.98 in ECB plus other coupons and get back $12.49 ECB after my transaction. Which means I gained $4.51 in ECB from the $7.98 ECB I used.

I was able to buy everything in the picture for only $1.60!

I read on Slickdeals that the Neutrogena Triple Moisture Split End Mender had an ECB deal where when bought it would give $7.49 ECB essentially making it free if bought with ECB. Plus someone had posted a $2 off coupon that can be used on it.

Then I got another box of AZO wipes since it is a monthly deal at CVS where when bought it would give $5.00 ECB. Then I used a $2 off coupon from their website.

The Mentos Gum is Buy 1 Get 1 Free this week. I combined this deal with four $1 off 1 box of Mentos Gum coupons that are available in the 10/3/10 Smart Source coupon insert.

$28.49 total before coupons - $1.60 total after coupons & tax = $26.89 in savings!

As I mentioned earlier I received $7.49 ECB from the Neutrogena Triple Moisture Split End Mender and $5.00 ECB from the AZO wipes for a total of $12.49 ECB from this transaction. I was able to turn turn $7.98 in ECB into $12.49 ECB which is a $4.51 gain.

I'm planning to use the $5.00 ECB I earned from this transaction, $6 ECB I already have, and a $2 off manufacturers coupon on buying Bio Oil so I can get it for either free or almost free (like $1 or $2 out of pocket).

Monday, October 11, 2010

My favorite freebies I received in the mail are from my friend Holly who sent me the cutest package for my birthday which was on October 5th. She sent me a cute notepad and a WoodWick Flower Garden Diffuser. This really meant so much to me because she is the only friend who sent me a birthday gift.

The gifts wrapped:

The gifts unwrapped:

October 4th-$5 DSW Birthday Coupon *not pictured because I used it on Saturday :)*-$10 iTunes Gift Card from a contest-New Classic Cushion #26 by Spornette Hair Brush from Allure Magazine's Virtual Store - According to bigdaddybeauty.com it's price is $13.50

Subtotal without tax and without coupons: $30.46$30.46 + 9.25% tax on taxable items = $1.38Total with tax and without coupons = $31.84

Here are the coupons I used:

-$5 off a $30 purchase CVS coupon I received in my e-mail-$9 Extra Care Bucks-$5 Extra Care Bucks-$3 Extra Care Bucks-$2 off AZO Wipes from AZO's website-$1.50 off 1 bottle of Sobe from their contest that's now over-$1.50 off 1 bottle of Sobe from their contest that's now over-$1.50 off 1 Crest Total Toothpaste-$0.75 off 1 Crest Total Toothpaste from the 10/03/10 Smart Source Insert

After I gave the coupons to the cashier my total was $2.37!

$31.84 pre-coupon total - $2.37 post-coupon total = $29.47 savings!

In addition to my savings, I was able to get $5.98 Extra Care Bucks from getting 2 Crest Total Toothpastes, $5 Extra Care Bucks from the AZO wipes, $5 Extra Care Bucks from buying $15 worth of Sobe, and $1 Extra Care Buck from the Dial Soap.

I received a total of $16.98 in Extra Care Bucks to use on a future transaction.

My birthday was on October 5th so I decided to go to the Stanford Shopping Centre in Palo Alto to take advantage of getting a few freebies.

The only thing I paid from was a cinnamon cupcake at Sprinkles for $3.25. I was able to get another cupcake with a flower on it for free by whispering the secret word of the day.

Then I had a free coupon I got in the mail for a free panty up to $8.50 in value at Victoria's Secret. There wasn't much to choose from so I got a blue panty since I don't have on in that color.

Then I went to Sephora to get a free eye kit. This freebie is available only to Beauty Insider members on their birthday.

I do have other coupons for birthday freebies that I'll use in the future. I have a birthday drink coupon from Starbucks that expires on 11/30/10 and a free birthday gift coupon from Aveda that expires on 12/31/10.

Friday, October 8, 2010

I had 3 great transactions at CVS this week. When I added up all my out of pocket expenses, my total was only $1.59 for everything!

Transaction 1 Wednesday October 6th - Total: $0.87

I had $5 in CVS Extra Care Bucks that had an expiration date of October 6th. I didn't want it to go to waste so I brainstormed a list of products to buy. I like to roll my Extra Care Bucks so I decided to buy 1 Revlon Clear Nail Polish at $3.99 and 1 Bengay Pain Reliever at $5.99 because they give Extra Care Bucks when purchased.

Then I read on Slickdeals that some people were getting a $5 off any Halloween costume, decor, or accessory coupon from the in-store coupon machine. When I scanned my card at the machine I received the $5 coupon so I went to the Halloween aisle to see what I could buy. I was overwhelmed by all the Halloween goodies. I chose to buy 2 Halloween reusable bags and a Halloween themed Chinese take out box.

I also got back $5 in Extra Care Bucks from purchasing the 1 Revlon Nail Polish and 1 Bengay Pain Reliever.

Transaction 2 Thursday October 7th - Total: $0.08

My mom also has a CVS card so she received the $5 Halloween coupon. She didn't want to use it for herself so she passed it on to me. On Thursday October 7th, I decided to use the coupon to buy a Halloween rug that costs $4.99.

After the coupon and tax were added the price of the carpet was $0.08!

Transaction 3 Friday October 8th - Total: $0.64

While I was looked through the coupons I received from the in-store coupon machine on Wednesday, I saw I had 2 coupons for Skippy Peanut Butter. One coupon said $1 off any 1 Skippy Peanut Butter. The other said $1 off any 2 Skippy Peanut Butters.

I then flipped through the current CVS ad to see if the Skippy Peanut Butter was on sale. I saw they were on sale for $1.67 each.

I also had a $4 off a $20 purchase so I brainstormed a transaction. I read on Slickdeals that at CVS there's a monthly deal where the AZO feminine itch relief cream or wipes gives $5 Extra Care Bucks when bought.

Then I decided to buy 3 Revlon Nail Polish Products since they each gave $3 Extra Care bucks.

September 27th-OK! Magazine - There's finally pictures in here I care about. On page 29 is Brian Littrell from my favorite singing group Backstreet Boys. He renewed his vows with his wife Leighanne on their 10th wedding anniversary in September.

September 29th-Postcard from Sephora reminding me about my birthday gift

September 30th-$15 Best Buy Gift Card I won from mycokerewards.com-Entertainment Weekly-Mike & Ikes candy-Neon Buddha Leggings & XCVI Leggings from Neiman Marcus - These leggings cost $105.00 total but because I had 2 $50.00 off codes from being on their mailing list I only paid $5.46 for the Neon Buddha leggings and nothing for the XCVI Leggings. You can read more about it here: How I got 2 pairs of leggings worth $105.00 for $5.46

October 1st-Hot Tamales-Coupon for a free drink at Starbucks because it's my birthday on October 5th

October 2nd-OK! magazine-Coupon for a free birthday gift of my choice at Aveda

If you have any freebies you've received in the mail lately feel free to share them with me and the other Mailbox Monday participants at http://www.afrugalfriend.net.

Also, if you haven't already, please publicly follow my blog by clicking the "Follow" button under the "Followers" section on the right hand side of the posts. Thanks!

Sunday, October 3, 2010

Sometimes it's worth it to subscribe to department store e-mails. On September 23rd, I received an e-mail from Neiman Marcus with the subject "For a limited time: Receive $50 OFF with purchase." At first I thought the offer would require a purchase minimum like $100 or more so I ignored it.

While I was browsing Slickdeals, someone posted that Neiman Marcus was sending e-mail subscribers $50 off any women's apparel purchase with no minimum amount required. It seemed too good to be true so I went to Neiman Marcus' website to look for something. I found a pair of Neon Buddha leggings worth $55 and went to check out to see if I'd get $50 off.

After I entered my e-mail address, $50 was deducted from my total! There was free shipping so after taxes I only paid $5.46 for a pair of leggings worth $55!

The next night, I was reading on Slickdeals that other users who had subscribed to Neiman Marcus e-mails on different e-mail accounts had successfully done the deal twice. I had another e-mail that I used to order from Neiman Marcus in 2009 so I tried ordering with that e-mail and I was able to get a pair of XCVI worth $50 for free!

I am impressed that Neiman Marcus was generous enough to give e-mail subscribers an opportunity to get $50 off any women's apparel. I really hope they do this again.

About Me

A blog dedicated to showing it's possible to eliminate full price on merchandise. You can see pictures of what I've received for free or bought at a discount. I also post about contests and sweepstakes I've won. You can also read reviews on services I've used that have earned me money or free stuff.